No longer happy to lend

The Lebanese government would be broke if it were not for the country’s banks. For decades the banks have lent to the sovereign to help make up the vast difference between money it spends and money it takes in. Of late, however, bankers have been increasingly vocal that they are no longer happy to lend money to a government that has shown no sign that it will ever be able to to pay the money back.  “Banks can’t continue indefinitely financing the deficit and the high level of public expenditure without concrete reforms,” says Nassib Ghobril, chief economist at Byblos Bank. “Some banks have been very clear in that they are willing to renew maturing issues but not to subscribe to totally new issues.” As of September 2011, Lebanon’s debt stood at $54.37 billion, according to the latest figures from the Ministry of Finance (MoF). Holding 50 percent Lebanon’s outstanding